Two more COVID-19 deaths have been recorded among patients at Columbine Manor in Salida. The latest two victims bring the Chaffee County total to nine people, eight of those involved Columbine Manor residents. County Coroner Jeff Graf said the latest fatalities included an 84-year-old woman and a 77-year-old male, both of whom died at the facility.
Of the 57 confirmed cases of the coronavirus known as COVID-19 in the county, 41 of them have occurred at Columbine, including patients and staff.
Columbine Manor Care Center. Photo by Dan Smith
The number of virus deaths and infections at such non-hospital, long-term care facilities in Colorado and the country have been a major concern to healthcare providers. There have been 119 outbreaks at such facilities in the state, and Carlstrom said that number is expected to continue to increase.
Governor Jared Polis outlined last week a requirement that nursing homes and senior care centers create a detailed plan for how to isolate residents with coronavirus symptoms and confirmed infections and submit it to the state by May 1. “We really need to step up our steps here for our long term care facilities. We really need even better planning and better protections,” said Polis.
Even recently, Chaffee County has conducted only 369 tests, 299 of which were negative, with 18 tests still pending at the time.
Carlstrom said reports from Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (HRRMC) indicated they have not had a positive test for COVID-19 there since April 11. Currently, HRRMC is operating at 60 percent patient capacity, or 15 inpatients. There are two COVID-suspected patients hospitalized with test results pending. Both patients are in isolation rooms.
HRRMC conducted 282 tests from the Emergency Department, inpatient, clinics, triage tent, employees, and providers. Of those, 18 were positive, 251 negative and 13 were pending. Of these 282 cases, 35 employees were tested and all were negative.
At the most recent count, there were 10,447 confirmed Colorado cases, with 2,003 hospitalized and 486 deaths. A total of 48,704 people have been tested for the disease in the state.
Carlstrom also announced that efforts to aid residents and businesses adversely affected by the shutdowns made necessary by the virus have been positive. The Chaffee County Community Fund, for instance, has $322,170 raised for the Emergency Response Fund, designed to be of assistance earlier while other forms of state and federal assistance are pending.
In addition, several county businesses and agencies have made efforts to aid families affected with meals and other forms of assistance since impacts on the community became known.
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